Newsletter No 5 20 March 2024

From the Principal

Hi Everyone.

Deb Stacey is retiring! Teacher Aide Deb Stacey is retiring, her last day at Buranda State School is tomorrow. Deb has been a Teacher Aide at Buranda since 2006. Teachers and students will greatly miss Deb’s support in the classroom and the resource centre, she has made significant contribution to our school. Deb has got great things planned in her retirement (including not setting her alarm clock anymore) and we wish her all the very best in the future. Thank you Deb from everyone at Buranda State School, we will miss you.

In other staffing news, I’m please to announce that as of Term 2, Teacher Aide Eliza Matheson will move into a teaching role with us. Eliza has spent the past 4 years studying Education and working here full-time as a Teacher Aide. Eliza graduated earlier this month and will move into Year 1/2M as a teacher. We are all very proud of Eliza’s transition to teaching. She has worked incredibly hard on her studies and continued her work here as a full-time Teacher Aide, all the while maintaining her calm and happy disposition. Congratulations Eliza.

I’d like to thank Laura Welch for teaching year 1/2M this term. We are grateful that you provided the students a great start to 2024. Best wishes in the future.

Tomorrow is Harmony Day, part of Harmony Week. Harmony week celebrates and recognises our diversity and brings Australians of different backgrounds together. This Friday, to celebrate Harmony Day/Week, children and staff can wear something orange, and our tuckshop will be offering a special menu with foods from around the world.  At assembly yesterday we learned that well over half of our student cohort have parents who were born overseas or were born overseas themselves. Please see further information in the newsletter.

There’s been significant work undertaken around the school this term as part of our redevelopment. Early works have included moving OSHC to the hall, construction of a new junior playground at the corner of the oval, and new storage behind D block. Before the holidays begin, classroom and instrumental music, and inclusion and learning support will move from the eastern end of A Block to the western end (formerly OSHC space).

Over the holidays, the early works program will commence in and around D Block. Safety fencing will be installed over the holidays so that works can commence to start access paths, a lift and classroom refurbishment. The resource centre and computer lab will continue to operate throughout. Please keep your eye out for an email from me on Friday outlining the full schedule of works to commence over the holidays, along with class movement. Disruption to student learning will be kept to a minimum. Conducting these works now will allow for continuity of learning as we move towards building a school able to accommodate enrolment growth.

I will attend a development day tomorrow, responding to your School review, with Dr Rosie Scholl.

Please remember to return your Student cards to the office before the end of term.

The last day of school for Term 1 is next Thursday 28 March. School resumes for Term 2 on Monday 15 April. I wish you all a pleasant Easter break with your family and friends.

Have a great week.

Simon Vaseo
Principal

From the HOD-C

International Women’s Day March 8

International Women's Day was celebrated on the 8^th March. I want to thank all the wonderful women who work with our students every day both at home and at school; for the talents and skills you share with the children and your consistent efforts to help them learn and improve their lives.

The changes sought by promoting women's rights, equity and inclusion for women on International Women's Day are not only remote and/or historical. They are in the news every day and impact women's daily lives in all countries around the world. If we can make changes for girls and women, we make the world a better place for everyone.

The theme for this year's International Women's Day is 'Inspire Inclusion'.

To ensure that we keep aiming for inclusion of women in all spaces and places, and appropriate recognition and pay for their talents, skills and efforts, we need to respectfully challenge assumptions and stereotypes about what girls and women can and should do. These assumptions are generally formed when we are very young.

This short video (2.07 minutes) helps us to uncover our assumptions about gender stereotypes. Changing our assumptions early is one of the most powerful ways we can work to change outcomes for society later and redraw the future for us all.

Screen-time Linked to Decreased Vocabulary

I would like to draw your attention to a study that has made headlines recently. The study has coined the term ‘technoference’ to explain the key finding - that for every minute of screen time toddlers are exposed to at home, they hear fewer adult words, make fewer vocalisations and engage in fewer back-and-forth conversations with their parents.

Oral language is the foundation of all literacy skills (listening, speaking, reading & writing). If young children experience rich oral language by talking with and listening to adults and other children, they will build a ‘bank’ of words which they understand and can use in spoken then written communication.

The Raising Children website gives parents guidelines for expectations regarding oral language development and some ideas for how to encourage early language development. It’s fun to remember how adults helped you acquire language when you were young; songs you sang, games you played when driving, board or card games you played and favourite books you were read. Your children will probably enjoy them, too.

Internet Safe Education also provide an article with Tips for managing screen time on the school holidays. Many of these tips can be applied to your weekly routines.

Harmony Day March 24

Harmony Day is a celebration that recognises Australia’s cultural diversity. It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. This is a day to appreciate and learn about our cultural diversity.

Our culture is in our language. Learning or maintaining a second language promotes our cross-cultural understandings and can assist us to increase the harmony and sense of belonging within our communities. Having a second language increases and improves our employment opportunities, globally, and is very helpful if we are fortunate enough to enjoy the privileges of international travel. There are resources available to support raising multilingual and bilingual children. We support and promote the importance of harmony and belonging for the students and families in our community, every day.

Dr Rosie Scholl
HOD-C

Upcoming Excursions/Incursions

From the Music Room

Term 1 is (unbelievably) coming to an end! Below is a snapshot of what we’ve been up to in the music room so far this year. We’ve also had a bit of an “out with the old, in with the new” here with new instruments from the P&C on the way and the clearing out of lots of unused instruments. I am so pleased to have been able to donate recorders and guitars that have been gathering dust to other schools in need of instruments. I’m sure the instruments will be much happier being able to make music again.

Across the whole school we have been learning about and experimenting with the Elements of Music: beat, tempo, rhythm, pitch, dynamics, form, timbre and texture.

Prep/1

The Preps and Prep/1 class have been focusing this term on foundational understandings of rhythm vs beat and have had some introduction (or revision) of notating rhythms. We have also been exploring pitch by drawing shapes and following them with our voices. This has been a beautiful activity I picked up from music educator Tina Arenas that allows students to start exploring using their voices musically through play. Here are one and another teeny snapshots of some of the students experimenting with their voices.

Year 1/2

The Year 1/2 classes have been exploring using the rhythms TA TE-TE and ZA (crotchet, quavers, and crotchet rest) and the pitches so mi and la, through clapping, singing and notating these sounds. They have also loved learning djembe (along with me, an absolute beginner myself!) and exploring the different sounds on this instrument. Some of them are making great strides in executing very precise bass and tone sounds on their little drums.

Year 2/3

The Year 2/3 class has been focusing on the rhythm TIKA-TIKA (semiquavers) and pitches so mi la and do, through clapping, singing and notating these sounds. They have been learning glockenspiel and we have just started learning to follow staff notation to play our glockenspiels.

Years 3/4 and 4/5

The Year 3/4 classes have been focusing on woodwind instruments this term while the 4/5 classes study brass instruments. They have all also enjoyed learning ukulele and are mastering the C chord, strumming and basic posture.

Year 6

The Year 6 classes have been studying folk songs this term and discussing the cultural context and purpose of the music we listen to. They have also been learning bucket drumming and learning how to play as an ensemble, as well as improvising on bucket drums and beginning to learn how to notate music for bucket drums.

Choir

The school choir has been working on a song to perform for the ANZAC Day assembly in Term 2. They will also be performing at assembly at the end of Terms 2 and 3 and in the end of year music concert. I’ve been really enjoying working with these students and look forward to sharing their work with you.

Ms Tafra
Classroom Music Teacher

Philosophy Corner

From the P & C

New P&C Executive

The P&C executive elected at the P&C AGM on 6 March 2024 comprises:

President – Chris McGrath
Vice President – Susan Boniface
Treasurer – Kate Slessor
Secretary – Hanna Gullo

Many thanks to Jodie Holloway, who has volunteered to be the P&C social media/digital officer updating our website and Facebook page.

Thanks to retiring P&C Executive

Heartfelt thanks to Deanne Wooden, who served as P&C Secretary for that past 2 years, and Tamara Connelly, who served as the Vice President for the past 2 years. They both made very substantial contributions to the P&C and the school community. Thank you.

Many thanks too for the ongoing support Nicole Rayner has given the P&C, particularly helping Kate with the many tasks required of the Treasurer.

Tuckshop

Tuckshop this Friday, 22 March, is a special Harmony Day tuckshop celebrating cultural diversity. There are lots of yummy foods from different cultures.

Orders close at 8pm tonight.

We need volunteers to make the tuckshop run. If you can spare a couple of hours on a Friday please sign up at this link.

Easter Raffle Tickets

Support our P&C by purchasing some Easter Raffle Tickets at this link or by scanning the QR Code in the flyer below.

There are lots of prizes from local businesses, totalling $1,645 in value, including chocolate hampers, book vouchers, pilates vouchers, and much more. Details of the prizes are available at the link for the raffle.

Working Bee

Many thanks to the many parents and kids who came to our working bee last Saturday to help Mr Bryant weed the school garden in preparation for planting next term.

Special thanks to Davide and Beth for cooking amazing pizzas too!

Warm regards

Chris McGrath
P&C President

E: president@burandasspandc.org.au
M: 0432899097
P&C website: https://www.burandasspandc.org.au/
P&C on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BurandaPandC

From Helping Hands

From the Community